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Depo shot and lupus

Question here. My gyn suggested that I get the depo shot. I was wondering if it a good thing. I know estrogen makes the flares worse sometimes. I refuse to get pregnant while on these meds. Let me me know what you guys think.

The only precaution I would suggest when contemplating birth control is to consider that many doctors tell us to avoid contraceptives that contain estrogen. It is believed that those that contain estrogen can lead to a lupus flare, increase inflammation and cause athritic-like pain.
I do not know if the depo shot contains estrogen or not, perhaps you should ask your doctor about that!

I have 'estrogen sensitive' Lupus. I have been on and off Depo for over 10 years and it didn't effect my lupus at all. I think instead of estrogen it just has progesterone which is what made the world of difference for me. BUT just as Saysusie said, check with your doctor.

NO NO NO

OMG. Please don't get the shot. Just, please... don't.

I got it on the advice of my Primary Care about 5 years ago. It is administered during your period, and by the time I left her office, my period had stopped. That's how strong it is. Things went well, no period for two months. I was into the middle of my second month, when my close cousin (who was in her residency for med school at the time) called me and insisted I not get another shot. There has been some speculation that it can cause infertility int he future, and apparently has been used in the past to keep "certain populations" from reproducing at all.

So I stopped it, and my primary care said it would be fine. I then proceeded to bleed for two months straight. She put me on the pill, which did not stop it. She then doubled me up on the pill for a month, until it finally stopped. It took over a year for my monthly to return to what it had been beforehand. I am not back on the pill, and doing fine.

Although I wonder that it may have jumpstarted the lupus in my system, as I was diagnosed with it only a year later.

Please, please research it, before you consider anything like that. It was the most horrible experience.

CAS, IF YOU HAVE ANY TENDENCY TOWARD BLOOD CLOTS, BE CAREFUL

ABOUT DEPO OR SIMILAR BIRTH CONTROL. MY PCP RECOMMENDED IT BECAUSE I WAS SEVERELY ANEMIC FROM VERY HEAVY PERIODS - HE ALSO THOUGHT IT MIGHT HELP MY LUPUS. WRONG - I ENDED UP WITH A DVT WHICH BROKE LOOSE AND ENTERED MY LUNG - I WAS IN THE ICU FOR SEVERAL DAYS AND THE HOSPITAL FOR ALMOST A MONTH. THE HEMATOLOGIST AT THE HOSITAL TESTED ME AND FOUND BOTH ANTIPHOSPHOLIPID ANTIBODIES AND LUPUS ANTICOAGULANT - WHICH CAUSES YOUR BLOOD TO BE THICKER AND PREDISPOSES YOU TO BLOOD CLOTS. THIS IS VERY COMMON IN LUPUS BUT MANY WOMEN ARE NOT TESTED EVEN THOUGH WE ARE THE ONES USING THE BIRTH CONTROL. IF YOU ARE SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING USING DEPO, I WOULD CONSIDER HAVING SCREENING TESTS FOR BLOOD CLOTTING DISORDERS DONE FIRST. AND IF YOU SMOKE, DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT DEPO - YOUR RISK OF STROKE GOES WAY WAY UP.

I have been on depo for 10 years and love it. I was on the pill and it reaked havoc on my body. I knew when I started the pill, in 1990, that I would not be able to stay on it forever because I smoke. I was on about 5 yrs and had to stop. In 1996, I started the depo. I was around 24 yrs old. Since then I have been dx with lupus and am prone to blood clots. My Rheumy and Gyn said that they are glad that I am happy with the depo because now it is my only option. My mother at the age of 50 started depo because of her age and the fact that she smokes, it was her only option. She just turned 57 and is still on it. My bestfriend just had a total hysterectomy thru the adbomen due to severe endo. They gave her depo to calm things down until she could get into surgery. The only problem I have been notified of was about a year or so ago, the FDA issued a "black box" warning saying that depo can effect calcium levels, so we just take calcium suppliments. The shots don't bother me, I get them in the butt. It can burn, but if the person giving it "pinches" as they inject, you don't feel it. I'm glad I learned that trick because I have to start giving myself methotrexate injections. Everybody is different, so it is good to do research. I hope that some of our experiences have helped.

Just a side note: When I worked in a vet hospital, we would give depo to male cats that had been neutered but still had an attitude problem. Made them sweet kitties for 3 months at a time. :lol:

It was horrible for me though. I had one shot and it made me so miserable my fiance was afraid to touch me. So I guess it worked because I was too miserable to have sex but it wasn't good for my. I can't do any hormone therapy or birth control because my body is just too nutty. My advice is that if you can try another method of bc do that first. Especially since even if the Deop works for you, you can only take it for 2 years because it decreases your bone density.